[1] The organization was inspired by the most radical factions involved in the Russian Revolution of 1917, and was mostly composed by anarchists, syndicalists and the revolutionary left of the Portuguese Socialist Party.

At the beginning of the 20th century, revolutionary syndicalists were opposed to purist anarchism, and defended Georges Sorel's position that only the trade union held the capacity to achieve a revolution.

For the maximalists the "proletarian army of conscientious men" was the only weapon against the bourgeoisie, one that could bring anarchism to operate in the masses and syndicalism to organize the economy.

[1] Although it is not possible to specify an exact number of militants in the federation, maximalist nuclei were found throughout much of the country:[1] After some time, members of the FMP began to feel the need for a "revolutionary vanguard" among Portuguese workers.

After several meetings at various trade union offices, and with the aid of the Comintern, the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) was founded on March 6, 1921.